Abstract
The airline industry has gone through tremendous change since government deregulation
in 1978 and shows indications of continuing this dynamic behavior. This paper analyzes the
operations of major airlines, discount airlines, and private business travel to make predictions of
where this industry is heading. The research explains why in recent years most of the major
airlines have experienced financial trouble, while many discount airlines have seen record
growth. This study examines the reasons why the airline system of travel may be cost efficient
but time inefficient, especially for business travelers, and emphasizes the additional costs this
imposes on businesses. An evaluation of new technologies with air traffic control systems and
innovative commercial aircraft provides insights as to how and why business travel is evolving
into a system utilizing an increasing number of smaller commercial and private aircraft which
may soon make the current hub-and-spoke system obsolete.